This bill would require offenders to pay a fine, money that would be used to compensate the victims.

How it makes a difference: The bill calls for the creation of state-run panels responsible for examining complaints of sexual harassment. The panel has the power of setting the amount offenders would have to pay to victims as compensation without having to turn to a court. Both the accused and victim have the right to appeal a panel’s decision to Indian courts.

Who does it affect? It would affect the roughly 40 million working women in India. The bill includes domestic workers, a provision that was left out of the first draft of the bill in 2010. However, the bill does not cover women who work in the agricultural sector, which employs roughly 68% of working women in India.

Criticism: While welcoming the bill, some critics say it does not go far enough to address the problem of sexual harassment.

A number of activists have criticized the bill, above all because it does not apply to women who work in agriculture and because offenders would not be required to serve prison time.

Some also oppose a provision included in the bill for the punishment of false complaints. Critics fear this will discourage many women from making legitimate complaints.

Others have questioned why men haven’t been included in the law’s ambit.

Some have pointed out that references to “sexually colored” remarked are too vague, allowing excessive room for interpretation.

What next? The bill was passed in the lower house of Parliament in August. It will be tabled in the upper house of Parliament in the session beginning Nov. 22 and is unlikely to face much opposition to get passed.

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